<!DOCTYPE html>
<html>
<head>
<meta charset="UTF-8">
<title>Here Comes the End by TheSevenUmbrellas (RosyPages)</title>
<style type="text/css">

body { background-color: #ffffff; }
.CI {
text-align:center;
margin-top:0px;
margin-bottom:0px;
padding:0px;
}
.center   {text-align: center;}
.cover    {text-align: center;}
.full     {width: 100%; }
.quarter  {width: 25%; }
.smcap    {font-variant: small-caps;}
.u        {text-decoration: underline;}
.bold     {font-weight: bold;}
</style>
</head>
<body>
<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/25694326">Here Comes the End</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/RosyPages/pseuds/TheSevenUmbrellas'>TheSevenUmbrellas (RosyPages)</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>Season 2 fix-it fics [3]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>The Umbrella Academy (TV)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Angst, Ben dies, Ben possesses Klaus, Ben possession, Ben possession fix it, Depression, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Grief/Mourning, Hurt/Comfort, Klaus Hargreeves Needs A Hug, Klaus Hargreeves Needs Help, Klaus Hargreeves-centric, Klaus possession, Klaus powers, Possession, Season 2, Season 2 spoilers, Vanya helps klaus feel better, posession, powers, the others are there too</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-08-03</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-08-08</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-05 07:34:02</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Teen And Up Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>3</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>4,326</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/25694326</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/RosyPages/pseuds/TheSevenUmbrellas</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>Klaus doesn't trust his own decisions anymore. He's forced Ben to stay with him for 17 years, he couldn't save Dave, and he can't even stay sober. So, he lets Ben take over by possessing him. After all, their siblings prefer Ben, don't they?</p><p>That is, until Ben is gone, and Klaus is left to face his own problems alone.<br/>Or is he?</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Ben Hargreeves &amp; Klaus Hargreeves, Klaus Hargreeves &amp; Vanya Hargreeves</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>Season 2 fix-it fics [3]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/series/1861315</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>108</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>815</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Collections:</b></td><td>The Umbrella Academy</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>1. Here Is Me Looking At You</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>“Let’s try again,” Klaus decided. He was sat cross-legged on a cushion, facing Ben expectantly. After the accidental possession the night before, Klaus hadn’t slept much. His eyes burned and his brain felt a bit hazy. He wasn’t afraid of Ben… he knew his brother would never take over his body without permission. But that didn’t mean there weren’t others. If Ben could possess him, the other ghosts would figure it out too.</p><p>He thought about the old man who followed Jemma around. She was a newer addition to the cult and a nice girl. The old man though? He was very, very angry. There was the ghost hiding out in the downstairs bathroom. She seemed harmless enough, but he couldn’t trust her either. The ghost of Robert’s daughter? Jason’s dead twin brother? The mansion was filled with more than just the living, and Klaus was scared.</p><p>So, it made sense to practice, right?</p><p>“Are you sure, Klaus?” Ben looked shocked. He hadn’t even called the idea stupid or idiotic, so Klaus knew he had to have taken him by surprise.</p><p>He nodded. “Yeah… practice makes perfect.” The smile felt wobbly on his face. “Don’t you want to try it?”</p><p>“Yeah, but…” Ben looked irritated. “But it’s <em>your</em> body. You don’t have to if you don’t want to.”</p><p>Klaus waved his <em>goodbye</em> hand. “You deserve a little fun. Don’t you think? C’mon Benny-boy. Scared you’re out of practice?” He threw the jokes out there, not really caring if they stuck. He <em>did</em> have to. Ben might not agree. He’d probably argue… but his brother was there because of him. He’d told him not to leave, and then Ben had suffered for 17 years.</p><p>“Klaus-”</p><p>“We’ll set ground rules. I’ll give you half an hour. You can go find our siblings and tell them you love them, or whatever you want to do.”</p><p>Ben hesitated. Klaus could tell he was tempting him. He’d wanted to talk to their siblings one-on-one for so long. “Okay. Yeah, let’s do it. Only for half an hour. I promise.”</p><p> </p><p>It was a strange feeling to be pushed deep down into your own consciousness. First there came the panic, the overwhelming wrongness. But Klaus forced himself to relax. He owed Ben at least this. He could do it. It was even sort of nice after a while. He felt a little like he was floating. There was no feeling, no light.</p><p>Sometimes he felt the vague drift of Ben’s thoughts. <em>Get out. Find Diego. Find Luther. Find- Wait… Is that Diego? What’s he doing here?</em></p><p>After that, it was only pieces. Something about Allison’s teddy bear. Something about Diego wanting someone responsible behind the wheel (and okay <em>ouch</em>, Diego.)</p><p>After that, Klaus must’ve… did the word blackout apply in this scenario? Whatever the equivalent of a soul passing out. He felt nothing but darkness and the overwhelming need to sleep.</p><p>And then the next second the world was too bright. He felt everything. The clothes on his skin, the noise of cars. Someone called his name, another called Ben. Klaus could do nothing but lean over and puke violently onto the street.</p><p>Why were they in an alley? Oh, wait… this was <em>the</em> alleyway. Five and Luther were there too, staring at him. Well, Luther was staring at him. Five became instantly distracted by his watch.</p><p>“We’ve got eight minutes left,” Five yelled. “Where are the others?”</p><p>Ben was there too, concern on his face.</p><p>“What happened?” he asked.</p><p>“We were talking to Ben,” said Luther. “Then you just… sort of… turned gray.”</p><p>“I couldn’t feel you,” Ben said at the same time. “You were slipping away. I had to yank you back. It was weird.”</p><p>Klaus nodded at the both of them, unsure who to respond to. He felt awful. He was worse than hungover, worse than the time he had a fever so high Grace forced him into an ice bath. His mouth felt dry, his head was pounding, and it was taking all his willpower not to puke again.</p><p>That was when Klaus noticed the suitcase. <em>Oh… Five was trying to get them home. Aww, that was nice.</em></p><p>He let his knees go weak and dropped to the pavement. Ben hovered, protectively as if he could do much to help. He hated the look of guilt in his brother’s eyes. <em>It’s not your fault</em> he wanted to say, but couldn’t because if he opened his mouth even a little, he was most definitely puking again. Oh god, he felt so bad. He was all sweaty and gross. He just wanted a shower and then to sleep for a week.</p><p>If they survived that long, given the end of the world.</p><p>Man, his life was so weird even without the whole cult thing.</p><p>“I had the weirdest dream,” he managed to whisper, a small smile on his face. He had to pretend like he was okay, if only to get Ben to back off a little. As if Klaus had written the script himself, Ben rolled his eyes. “What’s going on, guys? We going somewhere?”</p><p>In response, Luther hit the top of the bin. The loud <em>dong</em> reverberated through Klaus’ head, making him want to scream. If the whole world could just go quiet for a little bit, that would be fantastic. <em>Anyone know how to dim the sun?</em></p><p>“It was a simple task,” Five growled. “It was a <em>simple task</em>.”</p><p>There were more words, but they kind of sounded all jumbled together. It was just a wave of noise. Klaus got it. The rest of their siblings weren’t here so they couldn’t use the suitcase, whatever…</p><p>He wondered if asking to leave would be a bit tone deaf.</p><p>“Could you moan a little softer? My head is killing me.”</p><p>“Listen to me, you little puke bag, we just blew our chance at saving the world.” Wow, okay… harsh. He wanted to point out that at least he and Ben had shown up! Where were the others, huh? Wasn’t his fault they didn’t take deadlines seriously. “Can’t you let Ben take over again? At least he-”</p><p>Whatever Ben apparently did better than Klaus, they’d never know (although he could guess.) The suitcase started ticking. Five cursed, picked it up, and threw it into the air. In a flash of blue light, it was gone.</p><p>Along with their chances of going home.</p><p> </p><p> </p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0002"><h2>2. I’ve Got a Broken Mask</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>“… I’ll handle Five,” Luther said, already moving to the door. Unexpectedly, he stopped mid stride and looked back. Klaus raised an eyebrow. “It was… umm… nice… talking to Ben again. Tell him… tell him-”</p><p>“He knows,” Klaus said, ignoring the hot burn of jealousy in his gut. Did everyone prefer Ben over him? “He can hear you. He always can.”</p><p>Luther nodded. “Right… I should… Just, meet back here, okay?” He turned back towards the door and then it was just Klaus and Ben. As always.</p><p>“Klaus, are you okay?”</p><p>Klaus looked up, blinking. “A feel like a slug crawled in my mouth, had dirty <em>hot</em> sex, and then died in the throes of passion… not a bad test run, though.”</p><p>“Not a bad-” Ben had to take a very long and deep breath before continuing. “You’re covered in puke. It’s gross. Also, I am covered in puke, which is worse.”</p><p>Klaus wiggled his eyebrows. The very motion made his head throb. “What was it like driving all this hot business?”</p><p>“It… it was like having no skin… But still wanting to touch… everything.”</p><p>Ben wanted to do it again. He could tell. The look in his eyes… It had been so long since he could interact with the world. 17 years was so long. The annoying little voice in the back of Klaus’ brain reminded him that that was his fault. Ben was there because of him.</p><p>“Ready for a second round?”</p><p>“Woah… wait… are you sure?”</p><p>Klaus nodded. “Thing about it. Do I want <em>you</em> possessing me, or do I want… I don’t know… that guy possessing me?” He gestured to the bottom of the alley, where a man in a cowboy outfit was stumbling down the street. A woman marched through him as if he wasn’t even there.</p><p>Klaus turned his head quickly, before the ghost could notice them. “You’ll pull out if you feel me slipping again, right? C’mon bro, I need to practice.”</p><p>Ben pulled a face. “Pull out-”</p><p>“Okay, now who’s the perv?”</p><p>“Okay, okay sorry. Listen, are you <em>sure</em> about this? We could practice another time. You need to go get Allison.”</p><p>“No, <em>you</em> need to go get Allison.” Klaus grinned and spread his arms out. An invitation. One he knew Ben couldn’t refuse.</p><p>Sure enough, his brother took a step forward and then threw himself at Klaus.</p><p>This was a good idea, he told himself. He shouldn’t be in charge… he made too many mistakes. He’d trapped Ben with him for 17 years, he’d failed to save Dave, he couldn’t even stay sober… Clearly they all preferred Ben for a reason. Diego, Five, Luther… this was a better idea. This was the right choice. He could make that sacrifice for them.</p><p> </p><p>He let himself float, this time making more of an effort to stay conscious. He hadn’t been totally lying… he did need to practice. What if another ghost possessed him? Well… it wasn’t even an if. <em>When</em> another ghost possessed him… he had to be ready. He had to stay conscious.</p><p>He watched Allison and Ben’s tearful reunion. He watched Raymond’s confused questions. He watched them move the dead body… It all felt so far away. Like on the other side of a tv screen.</p><p>At one point he felt a tug from Ben, a silent question. But he also felt Ben’s hesitance. He didn’t want to give this up. Not yet. So, Klaus gently pulled away. Not enough to panic him, but enough to make his answer clear: No, I don’t want my body back. Not yet.</p><p>Not yet.</p><p> </p><p>Klaus let himself float. He knew he shouldn’t have. It was just… so tempting. It was so nice not to have to think for once. He forgot his name. He forgot his body. The apocalypse meant nothing, the real world meant nothing…</p><p>His mind turned to Dave. His easy smile, stained with mud from a hard day of training. His laugh, bright and loud between tent canvas. His warm skin still sweaty from… <em>well</em>. Klaus could remember the feel of his gold curls between his fingers. He could remember hot kisses on cold nights. Even if Klaus forgot everything else, he’d remember Dave.</p><p> </p><p>He woke up on the floor, surrounded by vomit. His head was pounding, his heart like a jackhammer in his chest. The world was too bright. The floor tilted on its axis. Klaus groaned.</p><p>“Klaus? Talk to me. You good?”</p><p>It took tremendous effort for Ben to come into focus. He was covered in puke and staring at him with such concern on his face, Klaus almost burst into tears then and there. He didn’t. But it was a close call.</p><p>“Ye’ ‘m g’d,” he managed to mumble. His tongue felt heavy and dry in his mouth. Gross.</p><p>He was on the floor of Allison’s bathroom. The tiles were cool against his skin. He wanted to lay there forever. Maybe take a nap.</p><p>“I almost couldn’t bring you back.” Ben’s voice trembled. “We are <em>not</em> doing this again.”</p><p>In his sorry state, Klaus could barely cough out a laugh. He gave it a valiant attempt though. The result ended with a horrifying, lancing pain through his chest. “We c’ld practice…”</p><p>“No! No, Klaus. No more practice. This isn’t about practicing is it? This is… what? Am I your new addiction, now? Drugs don’t work anymore so possession is the next best thing?”</p><p>Klaus flinched. Ben’s words were hitting a little too close to the mark.</p><p>“I was thinking about it, you know,” he continued, anger rising in his voice with every word. “I was thinking why <em>all of a sudden</em> you were so keen on practicing. I can <em>feel </em>you in there. You’re free to wallow in your self-pity, Klaus, but don’t you <em>dare</em> use me to self-destruct again.”</p><p>Klaus shrunk in on himself. He let his body fall slack against the tiles. Not able to bring himself to look at Ben, he stared straight ahead. The wallpaper was something Allison definitely picked out. It was light pink with small silver flowers imprinted along the sides. Pretty. Subtle. The tile was nice and soothing against his beating head.</p><p>“Klaus?” Ben said. He realized he’d been quiet for a very long time. He’d almost drifted off.</p><p>“You…” He started. His voice felt dry and rough against his throat. He swallowed and tried again. “You should take over when we go help Vanya.”</p><p>Ben’s face darkened. He dropped to his knees beside Klaus, as if proximity was the issue. “Did you not hear what I just said? Any of it?”</p><p>Klaus groaned, turning on his back. “Yep.” Sitting up was going to be a challenge. His stomach flipped. Oh well, here goes. With an agonized moan, he took hold of the toilet seat and forced himself up. His sight shrunk to a pinprick, the floor feeling a whole lot less stable than it had five seconds ago.</p><p>But then, with a long, deep breath, the pain cleared. Ben’s face was so close, their noses were practically touching.</p><p>“Ah, Christ on a cracker,” he yelped. “Ready for round two already? Sorry I need a refractory period before I can get it up again.”</p><p>“<em>Klaus,</em> I mean it. You’re staying in control. I don’t care about touching dirt or whatever anymore. Look at you. You’re a <em>mess</em>.”</p><p>“I’m always a mess!” What had meant to be a quick joke came out almost hysterical. He laughed, trying to play it off. A sob came out instead. “I can’t do this anymore. I can’t keep… keep fucking up! I can’t save you. I can’t save Dave. I started a whole cult who expect me to look after them. I can’t even look after myself. I just… I…” Another laugh turned sob tore out of his throat. “They prefer me over you anyway. Five. Diego. They want you. Just… you know… do your thing. You do a better job of it anyway. At least you can’t get any more people killed.”</p><p>Klaus readied himself, half expecting that was all the permission Ben needed. He waited for Ben to admit he was right. To say, <em>okay, sounds good. I’ll take over from now on and you can watch helplessly for 17 years. It’s the least you can do.</em></p><p>The thing was, Ben had always been the kind one. He was much too kind to Klaus. It was much more than he deserved.</p><p>“No one is going to possess you.” The words held a strange type of confidence in the tone. Ben scooted closer, sitting himself right next to Klaus. If he focused, he could almost pretend they were touching. “I’m sorry,” he said. “I’m sorry I was too harsh on you. I never wanted to make you feel like you couldn’t do this. I just wanted you to be better… I’ve seen you do better. I guess it’s easy looking from the outside in to pretend like I’d make different choices. I mean… I sang <em>Backstreet Boys</em>. At least yours had rainbows.”</p><p>Klaus snorted at that. “Which song?”</p><p>Ben looked away, embarrassed. “<em>Everybody</em>,” he mumbled.</p><p>“<em>What</em>? Of all the songs!”</p><p>“I know, I know.”</p><p>“What about <em>Show Me the Meaning of Being Lonely?</em>” Klaus asked. “You could’ve done… wait how does it go? <em>Life goes on as it never ends</em>…”</p><p>Ben groaned. “<em>Eyes of stone observe the trends</em>. <em>They never say forever…</em> Damn that’s so much better. Sounds just like something a cult leader would say.”</p><p>“That would’ve been <em>my</em> goodbye song.”</p><p>“See?” Ben smiled. “You <em>do</em> make good decisions.”</p><p>Klaus looked down at his hands. With his finger, he traced the letters <em>g o o d b y e. </em>His only talent was failing at sobriety and picking good songs to fake cult leader wisdom. Fantastic, someone give him a prize.</p><p>Ben nudged him with his knee. This time it made contact. Hey, look at that. He was finally getting his strength back! It was the small victories. “You can do this Klaus. Just like you did last time. We’re in this together. I’ll be right next to you.”</p><p> </p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Two chapters in one day! I just kept writing because the responses were incredible! I am so glad you guys like this story because I was so so nervous about writing it. <br/>Thank you SO much for your comments!! I hope I see more :D<br/>I'm on Tumblr @Thesevenumbrellas <br/>Chapter 3 will hopefully be up tomorrow around midday.</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0003"><h2>3. Is This The End?</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <em>“We’re in this together. I’ll be right next to you.” </em>
</p><p>Ben’s last words rang in Klaus’ ears. It’d been a lie. He had failed. His brother was gone.</p><p>He’d known from the start. Waking up without Ben… He couldn’t explain it… it was like a pressure had been lifted. His head was silent. Klaus had been using his powers non-stop for 17 years. Purposely channeling someone was very different from ghosts wandering into his vicinity. For that to be gone…</p><p>At first, he’d told himself it was because of the head injury. Ben would pop up eventually. He always did.</p><p>Then, Vanya had explained what’d happened.</p><p>Ben was gone. Klaus had failed.</p><p>He lay in Elliot’s bed (someone else who was dead because of them.) He wondered if now was a good time for that week long nap he’d been craving. Anything to stop the ache in his heart.</p><p>How could he have failed Ben again? He was useless. Useless. Useless.</p><p>In the distance, he could hear the faint noise of the TV. <em>Lee Harvey Oswald… FBI… Mafia ties…</em></p><p>The world hadn’t ended, and he didn’t care. They were fugitives, and he didn’t care.</p><p>The weight of Ben’s sacrifice physically clung to Klaus’ bones. His limbs felt heavy, his head foggy, his chest burned.</p><p>Downstairs, the voices picked up.</p><p>“They’re saying I instigated the riot? That’s unbelievable.”</p><p>
  <em>Doesn’t matter. Ben’s gone.</em>
</p><p>Luther’s tired but optimistic voice chimed in, “Look, the good news is that we restored the timeline and we stopped doomsday.”</p><p>
  <em>Doesn’t matter. Ben’s gone.</em>
</p><p>Diego’s voice was barely a muffled murmur. Klaus caught the word “Kennedy.”</p><p>
  <em>Doesn’t matter. Ben’s gone.</em>
</p><p>He knew he couldn’t stay in bed though. There had to be a game plan. They had to move. Even he knew that.</p><p>He forced himself from the mattress and slowly, gingerly, padded down the stairs. “It’s only a matter of time before they hunt us down here,” Allison was saying. <em>Doesn’t matter. Ben’s gone</em>.</p><p>Of course, the conversation escalated from there. Five didn’t want to hide (big surprise.) Diego, bragging about the Commission. Arguing. Always arguing.</p><p>“God, will you stop?” Klaus didn’t even realize he’d spoken until the others all turned to stare at him in shock. “Just… five seconds. No fighting!” He clenched his fists. A bubble of laughter tumbled from his throat. It was absurd. This was absurd. “Last time the world ended; you know why? Because of <em>us fighting</em>. All week, all we’ve been doing is <em>fighting</em>. And hey, you know what happened last time Ben died? You spent the entire funeral <em>fighting</em>. Ben’s gone <em>again</em> because of us and we can’t even take a break from yelling at each other.”</p><p>Another burst of hysterical giggling gurgled in his chest. He wanted to laugh. He wanted to cry. He wanted to scream. It’s like they didn’t even care. Because, of course they didn’t. To them, Ben had been dead for years. Their brother had saved the world and their siblings had barely noticed.</p><p>Klaus turned. He didn’t need to hear their answers. He was sure whatever it was, it was just more fighting. He was going to go back to bed.</p><p>He dragged himself up the stairs again. It took all his strength to slump against the bed, knees tucked up under him. This was it. This was the end. Again. Some part of him knew he was being selfish He should’ve been thinking of Ben. Ben, who was gone forever. Ben, who deserved so much more. His death should’ve meant something. <em>Anything.</em> Klaus should’ve felt invigorated to fight another day! Or inspired or angry or…</p><p>But that brief flash of anger as his siblings had wiped him out. He just felt cold. The world was quiet. That was nothing but exhaustion and grief left.</p><p>“Klaus?”</p><p>He looked up, to find the person he least expected to follow him: Vanya.</p><p>“Hey Vanya,” he said, flatly. “You the sacrificial lamb?”</p><p>“What? Oh no… I think the others are still in shock as your… um…” She trailed off. “Yeah… anyway…”</p><p>He nodded, unable to even think of a joke. He was too numb.</p><p>“I’m sorry about Ben,” she said, as she joined him on the landing. Their siblings’ voices from downstairs had picked up again. More arguing, he was sure. “He traded his life for mine… while he saved the world in the process.”</p><p>Klaus rolled his eyes. “Pfft. Show-off.” <em>Why Ben? Why did you leave me alone? </em>It was a selfish take, but Klaus was a selfish person. He didn’t want to feel this way. He didn’t want this all-consuming grief. He could barely think, barley move. He wished Ben were there just to possess him for a little while, so he didn’t have to deal with it.</p><p>But Ben wasn’t there, and Klaus was alone.</p><p>“He wanted me to tell you…” Vanya started. That caught Klaus’ attention. “… that he was too scared to go to the light. It wasn’t you that made him stay.”</p><p><em>Oh. </em>Klaus blinked. He didn’t know how to feel. Ben had known he’d felt guilty, and hadn’t said anything? Ben had known he could’ve left, but stayed anyway. Ben had… had thought of Klaus during his last moments.</p><p>Vanya was staring at him. He cleared his throat. “Oh, that little shit-heel,” he said, forcing himself to laugh softly. If he didn’t laugh, he was going to cry.</p><p>“He also said… that he trusts you. To make the next good choice.” Her voice came out as a question. “What did he mean?”</p><p>This time, the soft laugh became a hoarse sob. He ran his fingers through his hair, as if he could physically keep the mask on his face. He had to stare hard at the ceiling to keep the tears from falling.</p><p>Suddenly Vanya was beside him, a hand on his shoulder. “It’s okay to cry, Klaus.”</p><p>He smiled, eyes burning. “Thanks, Vanny.”</p><p>They sat side by side. She was warm, pressed against him. Nothing like Ben. He didn’t have to make a conscious effort to feel the press of her knee against his. There was less eye rolls and more gentle, soothing pats of her hand. She didn’t even call him an idiot once. Was she even trying?</p><p>“Ben shouldn’t be gone, Vanny,” he told her. “He was the only one who could keep my shit together.” <em>I should be gone instead</em>. What was the point of having these fucking comic book superpowers if he couldn’t save one single person? Dave. Ben. Gone. Not just dead, <em>gone</em>. “What’m I supposed to do without him bitching about my life choices?”</p><p>“I know that feeling, you know,” Vanya said, after a while. Her voice was so gentle, so soft, as if Klaus had suddenly become breakable. As if he was something to be handled with care. “I know what it’s like not to trust yourself or your choices.” A small, wry smile played on her face. “I did end the world, you know. Twice. Not that many people can say that.”</p><p>“That’s true. Twice. Called it, by the way.”</p><p>“I’m so sorry about Ben, Klaus. I really am. It’s my fault-”</p><p>“Uh uh uh,” he interrupted, mid-sentence. “None of that. Let’s just blame Ben. I usually do. It’s easy. He’s the asshole who left us here. Again! You’d have thought he’d have learned his lesson last time with the self-sacrificing.” They shared pained smiles. Then, in a more serious tone, “It’s not your fault, Van.”</p><p>“It’s not yours either, Klaus.”</p><p>He could think of a lot of arguments, but he didn’t say that out loud. Maybe he could earn that type of confidence one day.</p><p>Then Vanya flinched, breaking away. Her fingers went to her temples.</p><p>“Vanya?” he asked, “What is it?”</p><p>“I don’t- ah!” Another flinch. Her eyes squeezed shut. Was this some sort of left-over effect from the torture she went through? Panic ran through Klaus. He couldn’t lose another sibling. He couldn’t fail again.</p><p>“Vanya?”</p><p>“Harlan!”</p><p> </p><p>Five minutes later found Klaus and Vanya in the car, ready to rescue her… girlfriend? Stepson? Klaus wasn’t fully up to date on the whole situation. Vanya had said she’d loved the girl, but no one knew more than Klaus how love usually ended for the Hargreeves siblings.</p><p>He was disappointed the others had refused to come. He’d almost agreed with them. They needed to make a last stand, together. But then he’d looked at Vanya’s face. Good choices. He had to make good choices. And he knew exactly what type of choice Ben would’ve made if he’d been there.</p><p>Vanya was sat, staring at the steering wheel as if it was going to bite her. He tried a wobbly grin. “Well? Death awaits! Probably… I just wish you had more than the ghost whisperer for backup.” He could see her disappointment. Of course, she’d be stuck with him, the <em>useless</em> (but sexy!) trash. He didn’t even know how he’d help… Summon a few ghosts for moral support, maybe?</p><p>Vanya surprised him, by reaching out and taking his hand. “I’m glad you’re here, Klaus. Thank you<em>.</em>”</p><p>Klaus could tell she meant it.</p><p>Then their moment was immediately interrupted by the car doors opening. Diego and Allison slid inside. “We’re coming too.”</p><p>He was almost ashamed of the relief flooding through him. <em>Thank god someone competent! </em>Okay, so sue him! He wasn’t going to change overnight. But one good choice was a pretty great start, in his opinion.</p><p> </p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>I'm so sorry this took so long. I've been out of power because of the hurricane. Lucky for me it came back on last night so now all I have to deal with is a few torn trees :/</p><p>I hope you enjoyed this! I've never been great with endings... but I rewrote it a bunch and I hope it's good! :D</p><p>PLEASE LEAVE COMMENTS because they make me happy!</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
</body>
</html>